Or was he? Because as he stood before a crowd of hundreds of Democrat activists in the ornate Copley Square Hotel ballroom in Boston, he almost seemed to be endorsing Scott Brown, as he unwittingly reminded Bay Staters of the corruption that has plagued the Democrat party in Massachusetts and Washington. “Do you really want to put Massachusetts, which gave birth to accountable government in this country and stood up against the abuse of power, in the hands of power abusers?” he asked.

John Stossel does an outstanding job of explaining “crony-capitalism.” The word crony in my dictionary is defined as a close friend or companion, or an old companion. Oddly enough, the next word is crook.

A House committee has opened an investigation of the Office of Management and Budget, after an official there allegedly told an inspector general that they’d “make life miserable” for him if he complained to Congress about slashes in his budget.

Inspectors general are federal watchdog officials who are delegated to ensure the honesty and integrity of other federal officials. It is meant to be a non-partisan position. In this case, Patrick McFarland, inspector general of the Office of Personnel Management, received a “not so veiled threat from the OMB” about telling Congress of concerns over its budget.

A 2008 federal law allows inspectors general to inform Congress if they believe their proposed budgets would inhibit oversight duties. The law was designed to protect watchdogs from top agency officials that might cut watchdog budgets in retaliation for hard-hitting investigations.

The inspectors general watch to make sure that rules are followed, that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely, and that government power is not used for improper ends — like partisan politics. That the Obama administration — the most honest and open administration in the history of the world — though deeply into deficit spending, has chosen to slash spending for internal watchdogs is worrying.

The one budget that gets cut is the department whose duties are ensuring the honesty and integrity of the federal government. Since the federal government is involved in an orgy of spending, the funding for these watchdogs should be increased, not cut. Instead, the inspectors general seem to be treated as enemies of the Obama team.

Administration treatment of Inspector General Gerald Walpin, who was investigating improper actions by Sacramento’s mayor (a political ally of President Obama) was highly questionable. Walpin was fired and subject to public abuse and criticism in the media. There have been allegations of political interference at other agencies such as the International Trade Commission and even the Library of Congress.

The Chicago Boys are accustomed to playing rough. They do not welcome the media keeping an eye on them. They do not welcome criticism. They don’t want federal officials monitoring them either. That’s why so much is being done in closed-door meetings and in back rooms. Transparency? We’ll let you know sometime after the meetings are over. If it’s convenient.